Christmas tree stand having stabilized clamping members

Abstract

A stand including a square vessel in which the trunk of a Christmas tree is clamped and held, has a pair of clamping screws extending inward from its opposite corners, along a common diagonal axis. The inner ends of the clamping screws have narrowed necks over which fit slotted clamping angles, whose bottom ends are slotted upwardly to fit onto a diagonal rib in vertical registration with the clamping screw axis. As the screws are advanced inwardly the clamping angles are guided and stabilized by the rib, to maintain parallelism with the square corners of the vessel.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows: 
     
       1. A clamping stand for Christmas trees and the like, comprising a vessel having a continuous vertical wall, whereby the bottom of the trunk of such tree may be received therein, base means secured thereunder, a pair of horizontal clamping screws threaded through the vertical wall of the vessel and presented opposite to each other, and a vertical clamping member mounted on the inner end of each clamping screw, characterized in that each clamping screw has, spaced from its inner end, a reduced diameter neck portion terminating outwardly in a shoulder, further characterized in that each vertical clamping member has, substantially along its mid-height, a vertical slot including a rounded lower end portion sufficiently large to pass over the inner end of a clamping screw and a narrower slot portion extending upwardly therefrom, said narrower portion being sufficiently wide to engage slidingly on the neck portion of the clamping screw but smaller than the shoulder thereof, whereby on so screwing a screw inner end through the vessel wall as to project inwardly into the vessel, the clamping member may be mounted thereon by passing the lower end of said mid-level slot over the clamping screw inner end and sliding the said slot downward along the neck portion, and whereby clamping may thereafter be achieved by pressure of the shoulder against the clamping member. 
     
     
       2. A Christmas tree stand as defined by claim 1, in which the vessel is of substantially square cross-section and its wall has four substantially right angle bends, and said clamping screws are threaded through bores in two of said bends opposite each other along a diagonal horizontal axis, and in which the clamping members are bent right angular members, whereby to be presented substantially parallel to corner angles of the vessel regardless of the extent said clamping screws are advanced into the vessel. 
     
     
       3. A Christmas tree stand as defined in claim 2, wherein the vessel has a substantially horizontal bottom wall and a horizontal rib extending diagonally across the upper surface of said wall in vertical registration with said diagonal axis, and each of said right angular clamping members has a lower end slot extending upward along its bend to a height substantially equal to the depth of said rib, whereby on assembling the clamping members by their mid-level slots onto the neck portions of the clamping screws and so sliding them downward, the lower end slots of said clamping members will fit over said rib and be guided thereby as the clamping screws are advanced into the vessel. 
     
     
       4. A Christmas tree stand as defined in claim 3, wherein the length of the lower end slots of clamping members is substantially equal to the length of the narrower portion of the mid-level slots. 
     
     
       5. A clamping stand as defined in claim 1, further characterized in that the clamping members have a vertical apex line from which angle flange portions extend at right angles, and at the inward boundary of each clamp screw neck portion is a 45° tapered head, whereby portions of the tapered surface of the head bear with clearance against the inward presented surfaces of the clamping angle flange portions as portions of the shoulder of the clamp screw bear against the outward-presented surface of the clamping member along its apex line, thereby supporting the clamping member. 
     
     
       6. A clamping stand as defined in claim 5, further characterized in that the vessel has, at the level of its bottom, an upwardly presented horizontal rib in vertical registration with said opposite horizontal clamping screws, and each of said clamping members has a lower end slot extending upward along its apex line, said slot being of such width as to fit slidably over and along said rib, whereby the clamping members will be stabilized against rotation as the clamping screws are adjusted.